Study: Atlantans wait a long time for elevators at workplace

By Kristi E. Swartz

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Tired of waiting for that elevator?

Apparently, Atlantans do a lot of that.

In the past 12 months, people in Atlanta have waited a total 4.3 years for elevators where they work, a survey from IBM says.

And, they’ve been stuck in elevators for a total of 1.9 years, the IBM survey of American office workers said.

The survey, released Thursday, looked at 16 U.S. cities to see how “smart” their offices are -- or how much they contribute or take away from worker productivity.

The 6,486 workers who took the survey answered questions about how long they wait for an elevator, how well the office conserves water and electricity, and how secure the building is, IBM said.

Atlanta falls in the middle of the pack in terms of how long workers stand around waiting for an elevator. It's behind cities such as New York, where office workers spent a total of 16.6 years in the past 12 months waiting for one.

But cities where people wait less include the metro areas of Tampa and St. Petersburg, where workers waited a total of 1.6 years during the past 12 months, the IBM survey said.

So, the longer you’re stuck in an elevator, the more likely you work in an inefficient building, the survey says.

Try telling that one to your boss the next time you’re late for a meeting.